Bottas rules out resorting to psychologist like Rosberg

Valtteri Bottas has rejected suggestions that he could emulate Nico Rosberg and use a sports psychologist to help him win his fight with his Mercedes Formula 1 teammate Lewis Hamilton.

Rosberg, who beat Hamilton to the 2016 World Championship just days before announcing his retirement, said recently that he visited a psychologist “every second day” that season to help him cope with the pressure of the intense battle with Hamilton.

Bottas is adamant that he doesn’t want that kind of support structure, and would prefer to rely on friends and his own judgement.

“I don't think it would work for me,” he said. “Every athlete and every person is individual. Some need some outside support. I have plenty of good people around me I can talk to.

“For me it's the man in the mirror that gives the answers if I had hard times or doubts and so on. I solve that with myself usually. I don't really see a gain in that at the moment.

"It is pretty individual. If you look at many other sports, many people use psychologists all the time and get some good help from that, but some not at all.

"I'm not Nico, you know, I'm Valtteri, and I know what works best for me.”